Why am I passionate about this?

The first books I ever read were a pair of Star Trek novels before I knew it was a TV show. These books were rich with an ensemble cast of characters and different points of view. Something that has very much shaped my reading habits and writing. I love complex character dynamics and storylines that weave between them. When I became a writer, it was something I strived very much to emulate in my own work. In 2020, author NT Anderson and I set up Tepris Press to publish our own works and help other indie authors realize their works.


I wrote

Hunters

By Jon Ford,

Book cover of Hunters

What is my book about?

My book is the first in a multi-character urban fantasy saga with science-fiction overtones. It’s set in an alternate future…

When you buy books, we may earn a commission that helps keep the lights on. Or join the rebellion as a member.

The books I picked & why

Book cover of In the Balance

Jon Ford Why did I love this book?

I read this book on its release, and it blew me away. I’d always been a SciFi fan, but this was the first time I’d read an ‘alternative history’ book with science fiction leanings. It took a historical event, like WWII, and threw an invasion into it.

I love ‘what if’ scenarios. Most first contact books look at aliens arriving on a united Earth, but what if extraterrestrials arrived at a point where the world was most divided? It was my first time reading a book with multiple character perspectives. What did this invasion look like from an Allied or Axis perspective? How did it differ from the soldier to the civilian? This was a form of writing that became heavily influential to my writing.

By Harry Turtledove,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked In the Balance as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

War on earth erupted in every corner of the globe. Then the real enemy came. Inhuman invaders who were unstoppable, their technology far beyond our reach, their simple goal to claim Earth for the Empire. Here is a saga that covers all the Earth, and beyond, as mankind--in all its folly and glory--faces the ultimate threat; a turning point in history shows us a past that never was and a future that could yet come to be....


Book cover of The War of the Worlds

Jon Ford Why did I love this book?

I love this book as it’s a classic masterpiece in beautifully concise storytelling. There’s not a wasted word in this fantastic novel that was way ahead of its time. It boggles my mind that this book was published in 1898 and deals with an alien invasion. Just think, there would be no Alien, ET, or Independence Day without War of the Worlds blazing the trail over 100 years ago. 

There’s a place in literature for the sprawling epic, but as an author, I can’t tell you how hard it is to tell a complete story in so few words. To give a story a solid beginning, middle, and end. Wells accomplishes it beautifully, telling a story of wonder, horror, and triumph in less than 65k words. Genius.

By H.G. Wells,

Why should I read it?

17 authors picked The War of the Worlds as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

But planet Earth was not only being watched - soon it would be invaded by monstrous creatures from Mars who strode about the land in great mechanical tripods, bringing death and destruction with them. What can possibly stop an invading army equipped with heat-rays and poisonous black gas, intent on wiping out the human race? This is one man's story of that incredible invasion, from the time the first Martians land near his home town, to the destruction of London. Is this the end of human life on Earth?


Book cover of A Game of Thrones

Jon Ford Why did I love this book?

There are two things I love about the books in this series. Characters and lore. George RR Martin weaves a dense tale in both, sometimes to extremes. It’s a template I’ve followed (albeit more simply) in my own Songbird series, and attempting it only gave me an exceedingly deep admiration for how Martin pulled it off. Maintaining consistency in the lore from chapter to chapter and book to book when juggling dozens of different characters is a hugely complicated task.

All the characters also have distinctively different voices, giving you insight into their motivations and an inkling into where they sit on the forever-shifting spectrum. There’s very little black and white in this world, just many shades of grey.

By George R. R. Martin,

Why should I read it?

24 authors picked A Game of Thrones as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

HBO's hit series A GAME OF THRONES is based on George R R Martin's internationally bestselling series A SONG OF ICE AND FIRE, the greatest fantasy epic of the modern age. A GAME OF THRONES is the first volume in the series.

'Completely immersive' Guardian

'When you play the game of thrones, you win or you die. There is no middle ground'

Summers span decades. Winter can last a lifetime. And the struggle for the Iron Throne has begun.

From the fertile south, where heat breeds conspiracy, to the vast and savage eastern lands, all the way to the frozen…


Book cover of Leviathan Wakes

Jon Ford Why did I love this book?

This one has all the geopolitical shenanigans that I adore in a book. To love a book or series, there has to be more than just narrowly drawn black-and-white hats. I need shades of grey. Yes, I may disagree with what a character does or find him/her to be the bad guy, but I need to understand why.

This book ostensibly presents three political alignments: Earth, Mars, or the Belters. It then throws in a game-changing macguffin that all sides want. From there, the book (and the series) evolves, showing why each side has a vested interest in this item and what lengths they’ll go to to get it. As a reader, you understand it.

By James S. A. Corey,

Why should I read it?

23 authors picked Leviathan Wakes as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Humanity has colonized the planets - interstellar travel is still beyond our reach, but the solar system has become a dense network of colonies. But there are tensions - the mineral-rich outer planets resent their dependence on Earth and Mars and the political and military clout they wield over the Belt and beyond. Now, when Captain Jim Holden's ice miner stumbles across a derelict, abandoned ship, he uncovers a secret that threatens to throw the entire system into war. Attacked by a stealth ship belonging to the Mars fleet, Holden must find a way to uncover the motives behind the…


Book cover of Edge of the Breach

Jon Ford Why did I love this book?

Oh, my! The writing in this book is beautiful. As an author myself, I find this book to be one of those that makes me want to stop writing, as I’ll never write anything as horrifically beautiful as this. This is a Grimdark book, and the books in this series are dark with a capital D, so be warned, they are not for the faint-hearted.

The book follows two protagonists, Kyder and Rune, who are flip sides of the same coin, and the chapters alternate as you follow their parallel and tragic journeys. Be prepared for some utterly gorgeous prose. Scot writes with a sense of rhythm and timing that you ordinarily don’t see in books. It's art in written form.

By Halo Scot,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Edge of the Breach as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

We all become monsters at the edge of the breach. In a post-apocalyptic world where season of birth determines power — spring healers, summer mages, fall shapeshifters, and winter shields — a man and a woman emerge from tragic childhoods to lead humanity on opposite sides of an interrealm war.

▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀

There is a hole in the sky. They call it the Rift. A portal to the gods. The scar of a suffering world. Through it, the gods rule the last scraps of civilization, harkening war. As chaos beckons, two leaders emerge from the ashes of a dying planet.

Julian…


Explore my book 😀

Hunters

By Jon Ford,

Book cover of Hunters

What is my book about?

My book is the first in a multi-character urban fantasy saga with science-fiction overtones. It’s set in an alternate future where the world was irrevocably changed by a supernatural event in 2016 called ‘The Rising.’ The book is a global tale that follows the origins of multiple characters, including Fae, Vamyrii, and Werewolf, as they try to deal with love, loss, and political shenanigans. 

The book primarily sets up the geo-political background of the series and introduces the vast array of characters. Each chapter follows a different character and follows their individual storylines as they begin to entwine. It also establishes the nature of the ongoing mystery that will become more prevalent in the sequels.

Book cover of In the Balance
Book cover of The War of the Worlds
Book cover of A Game of Thrones

Share your top 3 reads of 2024!

And get a beautiful page showing off your 3 favorite reads.

1,098

readers submitted
so far, will you?

You might also like...

Liberty Bell and the Last American

By James Stoddard,

Book cover of Liberty Bell and the Last American

James Stoddard Author Of The High House: The Evenmere Chronicles

New book alert!

Why am I passionate about this?

Author Audio engineer Musician Fantasy fan

James' 3 favorite reads in 2024

What is my book about?

Americans love their Constitution. In seventeen-year-old Liberty Bell’s era it has become a myth. Centuries after the Great Blackout obliterates the world's digitized information, America's history is forgotten. Only confused legends remain, written in "The Americana," a book depicting a golden age where famous Americans from different eras existed together.

Raised on stories from The Americana, Liberty Bell joins secret agent Antonio Ice on a quest for her country. But in the Old Forest, forgotten technologies are reawakening. Figures such as Albert Einstein, Harriet Tubman, and Thomas Jefferson are coming to life. Will the American continent return to the freedom…

Liberty Bell and the Last American

By James Stoddard,


5 book lists we think you will like!

Interested in space warfare, Mars, and extraterrestrial life?

Space Warfare 48 books
Mars 76 books